


Cash or Check?

by TheLunarLadybug (thelunarladybug)



Category: Miraculous Ladybug
Genre: Adrien is a smooth criminal, Aged-Up Character(s), Alternate Universe - 1920s, F/M, First Meetings, Flirting, jk he's just really flirty and not bad at it
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-02-11
Updated: 2018-03-30
Packaged: 2018-09-23 14:44:22
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 2
Words: 2,547
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/9661910
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/thelunarladybug/pseuds/TheLunarLadybug
Summary: It's 1919, New York City. Marinette and Alya decide to go out for a night of fun where they meet a rather flirtatious young man.





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

  * For [Croxodox](https://archiveofourown.org/gifts?recipient=Croxodox).



> This was originally a school assignment but I swapped out the names and made it an ML fanfic (mostly so Aarica could enjoy it, you're welcome love).
> 
> Sorry about all the slang, it's all from the 20's, we had to incorporate all of that into our assignment so you might be seriously confused. EDIT (2018): I've gone ahead and added a glossary chapter! Open that up in separate tab if you need reference!

         Alya was a bearcat; Marinette knew that much by now. She was a bit of a bird, but despite her rather eccentric personality, men still flocked to gain her favor. Marinette wasn’t nearly as airtight as Alya was, nor was she an egg, but she could never despise her friend like some did. Alya was certainly a character, but she was the kind of person who was always smiling. Her energy was boundless. More often than not, Marinette found herself wishing she were more like her: confident in her own skin.  
        The two friends had met on a rather sunny afternoon a month prior. Marinette had been donned in her glad rags and was minding her own business when a drugstore cowboy had begun catcalling her. His ministrations started off kindly; calling her baby, the bee’s knees, the same thing any big timer would say in order to woo his prey. After Marinette had repeatedly turned down his offers, he’d gotten himself up in a lather. He started to call her nasty things like a bluenose or a bug-eyed Betty, but still, Marinette minded her temper. Alya, however, overheard the man’s jeers and told him to go chase himself. Of course, the man had just laughed, but after she continued to assail him verbally, he rolled his eyes and lumbered off.  
        Obviously getting a girl wasn’t worth so much trouble.  
        Perhaps that’s why Marinette had let Alya doll her up in a tight dress that accentuated her chassis a little too well. Marinette trusted the woman implicitly and figured that if she went out with Alya, maybe she could conquer some of her fears. Normally, Marinette would never picture herself in a blow like this. She would much rather stay at home and fill some more pages in her sketchbook, but here she was, looking like the billboards she typically avoided.  
        As soon as the two girls entered the rather posh looking building, Marinette began to feel queasy. She knew she was a canceled check in a room full of chin music and cuddlers. There was no place for a crasher such as herself.  
       “Don’t take any wooden nickels, alright?” Alya edisoned as she drifted away from Marinette and towards an average looking Charlie. Marinette just nodded to herself, hoping her friend would make use of those pockets she sewed into her dress so she could keep all her things on her person.      
      Marinette had debated upon adding pockets to what she was wearing as well; too often a lady didn’t have a place to put her things and she had to depend on a man, but she knew that adding in pockets would ruin the dress’s look completely. So she’d opted to not bring much with her, aside from a shawl to keep the chill of the night air at bay. If she needed anything, she could always find Alya, or maybe a kind stranger.  
      Marinette wasn’t holding out any hope for the latter.  
      “What are you doing all by yourself there, bugaboo?”  
      The man who addressed her held a dead soldier in his hand and wore a sly smirk on his face. The getup he wore was sleek, and his hair was slicked back in the typical bimbo style. There was a familiarity about him that Marinette couldn’t place, but she did know one thing about this man: he was the type of man to make girls go goofy. Marinette wasn’t too keen on letting him get too close so she elected to ignore him. Terrible mistake.  
       “Rhatz! I hoped a lady like you would be willing to a regular fella like me the time of day.”  
      Marinette rolled her eyes and continued to ignore him. She crossed her arms and angled herself away from him. That still didn’t get the message across. He was too persistent and Marinette found herself laughing at the man’s advances rather than shying away. He seemed different than the man who’d called after her last month, in fact, he seemed more prune pit then he was acting.  
       “Butt me,” Marinette said, catching his eye for only a moment. The way his face lit up made her heart do things she wasn’t comfortable with.  
      The man abandoned his hooch and pulled out a ciggy, lit it up, and handed it to her. She took a puff, a plume of smoke swirling around her, and immediately started coughing.  
      His smile widened and he laughed loudly. Marinette couldn’t help but laugh at herself too.  
      “What’s eating you?” Marinette challenged, a bit more flirtatiously than she thought she could manage.  
      This man wasn’t one to beat one’s gums, yet when he asked her to dance with him, she found herself unable to believe her desire to say yes. Men had taken interest in her before, but she’d never felt the need to reciprocate said interest. Not until now.  
       He held his hand out towards her like a gentleman should and Marinette grew skeptical. Usually, she was able to tell the cake-eaters apart from all the others, but this man was different in every way. She wasn’t a trusting person, and this was completely out of line for her.  
       But she took his hand, her mind gone to complete blooey.  
       The struggle wasn’t slow and Marinette was hardly able to keep up with her gigolo, but she tried her hardest. Despite the fact she was a heeler (and probably an embarrassment), he didn’t leave her side. He just smiled that smile and laughed that laugh. Marinette found herself growing more and more comfortable with him, finally able to keep up with the rhythm of the music. Even though she didn’t have a lick of alcohol in her, she felt peppier than she’d ever felt in her whole life.  
       “You’re a horrible dancer,” he teased as they made their way over to the wall.  
       “Really? I thought I was doing well! I could be a hoofer!”  
       He laughed again and Marinette had to avert her eyes from his.  
       “What’s your name?”  
       “Marinette. Marinette Dupain-Cheng.”  
       “Adrien Agreste,” his voice was smooth and he moved in closer. Marinette moved away, though, unable to believe what she was hearing. His face dropped for a moment before he resumed that charming persona.  
       “Well Marinette,” he began, “you never answered my question. What’s a nice girl like you doing here?”  
       Marinette almost missed what he’d asked; her mind too wrapped up in trying how to figure out if this was real. No wonder he looked so familiar. _He was the son of one of the top fashion designers in New York_.  
       “I came here with my friend,” she explained rather dumbly.  
       “No, not _here_ here. What I mean to ask is, what are you doing here in New York City?”  
       The question was a simple one, but Marinette almost didn’t know if she should answer. She came here to work in the fashion industry, but she couldn’t say that knowing who he was, could she? He would think she’d known who he was all along and who knew what would happen then.  
       “Cat got your tongue?”  
       She blushed, trying to gather enough courage to speak. “I came here to go into fashion.”  
       He didn’t seem offended by what she said, in fact, his face barely shifted.  
       “I’m not surprised. You struck me as a deb.”  
       Marinette didn’t know how to take that remark. Had he meant for it to be rude? At least she’d been truthful and hadn’t lied to him, but there was no way he knew that.  
       So Marinette just spit out the first thing that came to mind in order to resolve her mistake.  
       “Oh yeah? Well, you struck me as a dewdropper.”  
       He seemed to take her comment to heart and Marinette was left scrambling to pick up yet another blunder. As she fumbled over her words, he started laughing which only managed to fluster her further.  
       “I guess you’re right, but I like to think my manners are far better than theirs. Anyway, you said you were interested in fashion?”  
       Marinette nodded slowly. She didn’t know how to approach this subject without saying something wrong.  
       “Well, I want to. I want to design clothes. What we women have now is…unfortunate to put it nicely.”  
       “What do you mean?” he questioned. “I think what you’ve got on now looks fine.”  
       “Yes, it looks _fine_ , but it’s not _functional_. Look at this dress,” he did and Marinette couldn’t decide whether or not she liked his attention. Scratch that, she definitely liked the way his eyes lingered on her. “There aren’t any pockets.”  
       “No, they’d ruin the design. The dress is meant to be form-fitting, there’s no practical place to put pockets.” Although she should’ve been surprised at his obvious knowledge (what was she expecting given who his father was) she found herself angrier over the fact he wasn’t understanding where she was coming from.  
       “Don’t you think it’s a bit unfair though? You have pockets.”  
       “I wear _trousers_.”  
       “If I were to show you my entire wardrobe - before I edited it, you would see that women’s clothing doesn't have pockets. On some dresses, there _are_ practical places to put pockets.”  
       “So you don’t have pockets. It’s not hurting anyone.”  
       “We have no place to put things!” Marinette exclaimed a bit too loudly which earned a few glares from other party goers. “We have to hand our personals to men since they’re the only one with pockets. It’s an attempt, a very sly attempt but an attempt all the same, to keep us dependent on men. Women can’t work half the jobs a man can, and most still think it’s inappropriate for a girl to be out without a chaperone! It’s ridiculous.”  
       Marinette hardly ever expressed her opinion, especially not in the company of men, but she figured that if she'd already slipped up, she might as well get her point across. Maybe she could convince him to agree with her and he'd speak to his father. She didn't like the idea considering she wanted to be the one to introduce pockets, but she figured it was better that women win something rather than nothing at all.     
       “Why are you wearing that if you don’t agree with it, then?”  
       “It’s my friend’s. I don’t usually come to events like this.”  
       He nodded in understanding and was quiet for a moment. Marinette internally began to panic, fearing she’d scared him off or angered him, but he didn’t leave or offer her some excuse to slink away. He looked her dead in the eyes.  
       “My father is involved in the fashion industry,” he stated plainly.  
       Marinette was silent for a moment before finally admitting that she did indeed already know that. She explained that his name had given it away and that she in no way had been trying to scam him. Marinette only hoped her apology would be accepted.  
       Grabbing a drink on a passing tray, Marinette downed it hoping that it would help alleviate some of her stress.  
       “Do you hold your alcohol as well as you smoke?”  
       Marinette laughed, thankful he was able to make her feel better even if she was the butt end of the joke.  
       “A little better I think.”  
       They stood in silence – well, they were silent. The room around them was still lively but it felt like everyone else was on another plane of existence entirely.  
       “I’m sorry if you’re mad. I wasn’t trying to cozy up to you for a handout or any-”  
       He cut her off. “It doesn’t matter. I’m not upset. I was going to see if I could get you an interview, but since you’re not interested…”  
       “Thank you, but I could never accept. This is something I need to do myself. I need to make it on my own.”  
       He smiled, obviously pleased with her answer. He told her that she should still come by his father’s office if she ever need anything, though he didn’t doubt that her fiery temper would get her to where she wanted to be.  
       “Think of it as a thank you, bugaboo. You know, for showing me such a good time.”  
       For the remainder of the evening, the two stayed with one another. When Alya came to Marinette telling her that she was going home with the man she’d met (she said his name was Nino), Adrien offered to see her home (and carry Marinette’s things in his pockets, a request Marinette obstinately denied). At this point, Marinette didn’t figure Adrien would try anything. His father was a well-known figure after all. He had to keep up his image.  
       At the foot of Marinette’s little apartment building, the two said their goodbyes and Marinette was sure she’d be seeing more of Adrien in the future.  
       “Cash or check?” he asked slyly, the cockiness of his earlier flirtations back in full swing. Perhaps if he'd dropped the act and asked her sincerely, Marinette might have changed her mind.  
       “Check.”


	2. Slang Glossary

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> So many people were interested in knowing the terms used, so I've compiled a glossary! Keep in mind, I wrote this a while ago for a class so I'm not quite sure if these terms are 100% correct (looking back I don't understand why I used half these terms). Everything is ordered based off where it appears in the text.

Bearcat: a fiery girl

Bird: general term for a man or woman, sometimes meaning "odd," i.e. "What a funny old bird."

Airtight: attractive

Egg: person who lives the big life

Glad Rags: town clothes

Drugstore Cowboy: a well-dressed man who loiters in public areas trying to pick up women. 

Baby: sweetheart

Bees Knees: terrific (found expression)

Big Timer: charming and romantic man

Lather: (I used it to denote frustration, but I can't find the actual definition)

Bluenose: an excessively puritanical person, a prude, Creator of "the Blue Nozzle Curse." 37. 

Bug-eyed Betty: an unattractive girl

Go Chase Yourself: get lost, scram

Dolled Up: dress up

Chassis: the female body

Blow: crazy party

Billboards: flashy man or woman

Canceled Check (Stamp?): a shy girl at a party

Chin Music: gossip

Cuddler: one who likes to make out

Crasher: a person who attends a party uninvited (why did I use this word I'm confused)

Wooden Nickels: (I can't find this one but I think it means "yo don't take anybody's shit".)

Edisoned: questioned

Charlie: a man with a mustache (IF I WAS REFERENCING NINO-)

Dead Soldier: an empty beer bottle (hell yeah Adrien get turnt)

Bimbo: a tough guy 

To Make Girls Go Goofy: to make girls fall in love

Rhatz: how disappointing

Regular Fella: phrase that just means "normal guy"

Prune Pit: old-fashioned

Butt Me: "I'll take a cigarette" (this is the 20s and they're not 14 my dudes)

Hooch: booze

Ciggy: cigarette 

What's Eating You?: "What's wrong?" (this makes no sense why did I-)

Beat One's Gums: idle chatter

Cake-Eaters: lady's man

Blooey: condition when one has gone to pieces

Stuggle: dance

Gigolo: dance partner

Heeler: a poor dancer

Peppier: energetic

Hoofer: a dancer or chorus girl

Deb: a person making a first appearance in a career or in fashionable society (that's not the correct definition cause that's hardly offensive but close enough)

Dewdropper: a young man who sleeps all day and doesn't have a job (uh idk if that's right because that seems hella savage)

Cash or Check?: kiss now or later?

Check: later

 

If I missed anything or you want to look at some other slang from the time, I used http://www.citrus.k12.fl.us/staffdev/Social%20Studies/PDF/Slang%20of%20the%201920s.pdf as a reference!

 

 

 

 

**Author's Note:**

> Cash or check: should I kiss you now or later?
> 
> I read this really awesome paper on pockets and feminism a while ago. I figured I'd incorporate parts of it so my story would stick out in class (it was four pages over the minimal requirement printed out so I'm pretty sure it already stuck out), but I also found the topic really interesting. I'm not sure if purses existed at the time, but I like to think after this story takes place Marinette helps with their creation.
> 
> My tumblr-- thelunarladybug


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